Fort Worth weekly gazette. [volume] (Fort Worth, Tex.) 1882-1891, 1887-02-25
CANNIBALISM IN HAYTI.
Decline of British Possessions - Facts
About West India.

Globe Democrat
U. B. Pewter, q resident of Kingston,
on the island of Jamaica, is at the
Lsclede hotel. He is the manager of a
company which Is engaged in mining
phosphate on the Grand Csyman's is
land, near Jamaica, and shipping it to the
United States, where it is used for
fertilizing purposes. This phosphate
is the remains of some kind of animal life,
according to biologists, and is thought to
have been left In the immense beds in
which it now lies by the subsistence of
some prehistoric sea. The deposits
upon the Grand Caymsn's island are in
masses from three feet to fifty deep and
at some distance from each other, some
of them sustaining upon them the growth
of forests known to be more than 100
years old.
Upon the present commercial and social
condition of Jamaica and the whole
group of West Indian islands, Mr.. Pow
ter talks dlscouragingly.
"The islands and their inhabitants are
retrograding rapidly" said he yesterday.
"They are exporting less and less every
year, and the natives are departing more
and more from civilization. The reason
l believe to be the abolition of slavery
in 1924. The effects of that step
were not felt by the white planters
until the old slaves began to die, and
the new generation had to be depend ed
upon for labor. They would not work,
not having been bred to industrious
habits, and each old slave that died was
so much loss to the quantity of labor to
be obtained. Some of the planters re-
sorted to the expedlent Of importing
coolie labor and did very well, hut d
large number of owners did Lot do this
and estates on the island went to ruin
fast. AS time passed on, it became
more and more difficult to obtain
laborers, and the evil effect of this
unusual idlene was seen in yearly de-
creaslrg imports. The negroes need not
work to get food and q house-these can
be had for nothing-snd the only reason
why they work at all is that they may earn
enough money to dress in expensive and
gaudily colored clothes. That is the only
use they have for money. If slavery had
not been abolished, or if it could be re-
established, the islands would flourish"
"Whst of the reports that the practice
CT cannibalism has been revived in
Hayti?"
''In the main they are true. Hsyti. of
all the Wet Indies, is the most marked
example of the decay of the islands.
When the French left it in 1772, they eft
a specifically, at least, religious people,
With churches, factories and reads. Now
there is not church or a factory on the
island, and but one road, while the
atholic religion has been abaud oned tor
the Obi or fetish worship, and cannibal-
ism has again sprung up. The island
is black republic, and 10 whites are
allowed to own property. In fact, the
only whites on the island are few
European traders, who conduct the
financial affairs of the government and
lend it money. The island is not COM
municsted with by the people of the
other islands, and the negroes are left
to devour one another as fast as
they please. Their human flesh eating
is not that of the past century. They
do not eat the flesh of persons
who have died, and having nobody
to war with they can take no prisoners to
cook and eat. They eat the flesh of chill
dren, taken when young, penned and
iattened for the feast. Sometimes they
steal children from the neighboring
islands and fatten them for their tables.
They are drifting back into complete bar
barism, and there is no inclination on the
part OF the other islanders to interfere |
with their gradual extinction"